Undying Love
by Crisis Rose
Summary: Ariel's not a mermaid, but a high school student and Eric's not a Prince. Eric Prince is the most sought after boy at Atlantica High, whereas Ariel is barely even acknowledged. In an extraordinary turn of events can the two of them find love, or is their time running out? *Reviews are always helpful* Also, I'm not entirely sure how long this is going to be so just bare with me :)
1. Chapter 1

"Flounder keep up" called Ariel, giggling as she ran across the sand! She glanced back to see her childhood friend about half a mile behind her. Sighing, she slowed to a stop and looked out across the vast expending ocean. She always loved the sea and every night after school, she and her best friend Flounder would walk down to the beach to explore the caves or just play in the water. Often they were joined by Sebastian and Scuttle, but the two of them were catching up in ICT after school tonight so it was just Ariel and Flounder. Of course, his real name wasn't Flounder, it was Tai, but they'd nick-named him Flounder after finding out about his love of fish. Scuttle had been nicknamed so because he wasn't exactly the sharpest tool in the box, and because he hated is real name, Fredrik. In fact Ariel and Sebastian were the only ones who'd kept their real names out of the four of them.

"Ariel, you know I can't run that fast" panted Flounder, collapsing on the sand at Ariel's feet and kicking off his shoes. Ariel just smiled and rolled her eyes. She was on the school athletics team; long distance, and there weren't many people in the school who could catch her over a mile or more.

"Well, when you get your breath back we'll carry on" said Ariel sarcastically, sitting down next to her friend. She was glad of the rest actually; it gave her time to relax. The only sound was the heavy panting of Flounder and the waves crashing onto the soft sand. It was beautiful and it was moments like this that made Ariel glad her family had decided to move to Atlantica Bay.

Suddenly the silence was disrupted by the cackling giggles of a group Ariel knew all too well.

"Vanessa" groaned Flounder. Ariel sighed and looked up to the cliff where Vanessa, Chloe and Lauren were tottering after a group of boys. Of course they were. Each of them wore a crop-top and a mini skirt, and held a handbag on one arm as they sauntered after the four boys in at least four inch heels. From here Ariel couldn't tell who the boys were, but she could guess one of them. Eric Prince, every girls crush (including Ariel's it had to be said.) Although he could have his pick of any girl in the school, Eric remained single, despite Vanessa's pleas. He was intelligent, and in Ariel's top set classes for most things. He was also fairly sporty and Ariel often saw him at Athletics or playing football after school. On top of this he was insanely attractive and not a jerk, unlike most of the popular guys at Atlantica High.

"I don't understand why everyone likes him so much" complained Flounder, sitting up and throwing the pebbles round him into the crashing waves.

"Hmm," was Ariel's reply, and she turned her attention back to her friend. "Can we carry on now?" Flounder groaned.

"You go," he said, "I'll catch up." Ariel smirked and got to her feet before continuing her walk down the beach.

After a minute she quickened her pace to a jog and before she knew it she was running as fast as she could towards the caves. She knew she would have to be quick, because the tide was coming in, and she wouldn't be able to swim against the current so close to the rocks. Through her thoughts she hadn't been looking where she was going and ran straight into someone, knocking not only them, but her-self to the ground.

"Oh my god, I'm so sorry" she rushed, sitting up and coming face to face with a pair of kind, sapphire blue eyes. Eric!

"It's okay," said Eric, standing up and brushing himself off, "it was my fault." Ariel was frozen, she stared up at him with utter adoration; he was even better looking close up.

Only after a minute did she realise that he had spoken.

"Oh… no sorry I-I… I wasn't looking where I was going" she stuttered, using her hair to hide her face; for she knew they must be the same shade of red now. Eric gave a half smile and held out his hand to help Ariel up. She took it shakily and he pulled her effortlessly to her feet. She stood for a second with her hand in his before quickly pulling away and dusting the sand from her clothes.

Behind Eric stood, Kieran Jackson, Liam Fletcher and Eric's cousin Grimsby Carlisle.

"She just wanted an excuse to get close to you," joked Kieran, "she's just like all the others. Be careful, or she'll be in your bed by the end of the week." Eric laughed half-heartedly before turned back to face Ariel, who he could tell was uncomfortable and more than a little embarrassed.

"Are you hurt" he asked? Ariel just shook her head and lowered her gaze to the floor. "Alright," continued Eric, "just be careful." Ariel nodded again and quickly moved aside to continue her journey. Eric was left staring after her, before Liam slapped him on the back and ruffled his hair.

"Ariel Coulson got your fancy has she" he laughed, pinching Eric's cheek as if he were only a child.

"Shut up," said Eric, laughing and slapping his friend way playfully, "she needed help."

"Yeah… right" scoffed Kieran, as the four boys walked down the beach, laughing and play fighting.


	2. Chapter 2

Ariel was mentally kicking herself. She had run straight into Eric Prince, the one guy in the school she had feelings for and blown her chance sky high. As black clouds rolled across the sky she reached the caves. But she didn't want to explore anymore, she wanted to hide. Hide herself from the world and everyone in it. Thunder rumbled across the black sky, and echoed against the cliff. A storm was coming, and a big one at that. Ariel knew that it was dangerous for her to stay here, and just as she turned to go back she was greeted by the one person she didn't want to see right now.

"Well, well, well, if it isn't little Coulson" chanted Vanessa. Ariel gritted her teeth, she was the youngest and smallest of her family, and had six older sisters; the perfect reason for Vanessa to chant such things. Lauren and Chloe merely laughed at Vanessa's statement.

Ariel backed off as the three girls strode menacingly towards her.

"I saw you," spat Vanessa, "with Eric." Ariel felt sick. How could they have seen that? Ariel didn't even realise, but tears began slipping down her cheeks.

"Oh look, she's crying" said Chloe, with sickening innocence.

"Probably because she knows she doesn't stand a chance with him," said Vanessa spitefully. "After all, why would a fit guy like him, even look at a freak like you?"

"Yeah," agreed Chloe. "He only helped you up because he felt sorry for you."

"Go away" choked Ariel.

"Excuse me" exploded Vanessa?!

Ariel could see that Vanessa was getting angry, and knew better than to challenge her. She had recently been expelled from her previous school for getting into a fight and hospitalising her opponent. She backed into the cave as the rain began to beat down from the darkening sky.

"Come back here" shrieked Vanessa. Ariel turned and ran, she climbed over the rocks, but as she climbed over one of the rocks her foot slipped and she fell. She landed awkwardly on her ankle and a crack echoed around the cave as pain seared up through her bones. Ariel cried out in pain and clutched her leg. Vanessa, Chloe and Lauren stopped and smiled.

"Let's go" said Vanessa, and with that the three girls left the cave.

Ariel was left crying in pain, cold and unable to move. Shakily she pushed herself up so that she was sat on one of the rocks. The tide was coming in fast as the waves were breaking just short of the cave, letting the water lap against the rocks.

"Help," she screamed, "please, help me!"

Flounder stood with his back against the cliff, keeping out of sight as Vanessa, Chloe and Lauren as they walked past. It was raining heavily now, and the tide had come in so that it blocked the entrance to the cave. Ariel must come out soon! He walked as close to the cave as he could without getting too wet.

"Ariel" he called? He listened carefully for any sound from his friend. A scream pierced his ears, causing his heart to jump.

"Help," screamed Ariel, desperate now that the tide had reached the rocks where she was sat! "Flounder help me!" Flounder didn't know what to do; he couldn't go in after her for he suspected her to be hurt, and he wasn't strong enough to get her out. On top of that the current had picked up, and the waves rose higher than even a few minutes ago.

"Wait there," called Flounder at the top of his voice, "I'll get help!" And with that, Flounder sprinted back down the beach looking for somebody, anybody, who would help him.

Ariel was in agony. Her throat was sore from all the screaming and her clothes and hair were soaking wet from a few of the larger waves that had broken on top of her. She knew the tide wasn't fully in yet; and that if she were to stay here she would surely drown. She was a good swimmer, but the state of her ankle and the force of the current wouldn't allow her to leave even if she could. She was trapped.

Flounder was searching desperately for someone who would help Ariel. Unfortunately for him the storm had gotten a lot worse and almost everybody had left the beach… _almost _everybody.


	3. Chapter 3

Vanessa, Lauren and Chloe had caught up with Eric. Whilst Liam and Kieran played foolishly in the towering waves Vanessa had taken the opportunity to get closer to Eric whilst he stood waiting for them. She was an enchantress when it came to guys, and had slept with pretty much every boy in the school. But she had her eyes set on Eric and had been watching him closely, figuring out a way to get to him. She slowly walked up to the eighteen year old, wrapping her arms around herself and shivering against the cold.

"Excuse me, do you have a spare jacket" she asked innocently, swaying slightly as if she were feeling faint. But Eric was smart, and not as easily fooled by Vanessa's acting as other boys were.

"If you're cold, why don't you go inside," replied Eric, "your house is just there?" In response Vanessa fluttered her eyelashes.

"I don't think I can make it" she said weakly, putting a hand to her head and falling forward against Eric. To be honest, it sickened Eric to see her playing with him like that. He knew she was faking it, but he wasn't a jerk and he wouldn't let her fall. He caught her with ease and helped her to stand on her own two feet. She blinked at him, widening her eyes.

"You saved me" she gasped.

"No, I didn't" was Eric's short reply, letting go of her to leave her standing just in front of him.

From beside Eric, Grimsby had taken off his coat and shyly held it out to Vanessa. She looked down her nose at the mute boy and scoffed.

"Take that thing away from me, weirdo" she said spitefully!

"I thought you were cold" said Eric, in defence of his cousin?

"I don't want_his_ help" spat Vanessa! Embarrassed, Grimsby put his coat back on and watched as Vanessa glared at Eric, before leaving, with Chloe and Lauren in tow. He put his hands in his pocket and looked down at the sand. Eric could see that his cousin was hurt. In a way, the two of them were more like brothers. Eric's parent's had died when he was young and he'd been living with his three cousins Grimsby, Charles and Madeline and his Aunt Carlotta and Uncle Andrew for almost twelve years now. Grimsby was a year younger than him at seventeen and a mute, for these reasons, Eric felt it his duty to take care of him. His other cousins, Charles and Madeline, were twins and had recently celebrated their sixth birthday, so he didn't feel as responsible for them and he did for Grimsby who was in most of his lessons at school.

"Don't worry Grim," he said, putting his hand on his cousin's shoulder, "she's not worth it." Unable to speak, Grimsby used sign language to tell Eric 'I was just trying to help.'

"I know" replied Eric, not really sure what to say.

Grimsby smiled. In a way, being mute was fun. The only people in the school who understood sign language were a few of his teachers, and even they had a limited understanding. That being so, Eric was the only person who understood everything he was trying to convey and often acted as a translator for his peers and teachers. For that, Grimsby was very grateful, Eric had always stuck up for him and let him join his group between lessons; even now that he was the most sought after boy in the entire of Atlantica High. The fact that Eric was the only one who understood him meant that the two of them could 'talk' from across the class room without anybody knowing what they were talking about. Eric was the only one who knew that Grimsby had a thing for Vanessa's friend Lauren and had sworn never to tell anyone, which he hadn't. Eric had learnt sign language as soon as he'd moved in with his cousins and was determined to learn at least enough to have a conversation. His Aunt Carlotta had been impressed at how quickly he was learning and soon Eric knew every word, phrase and syllable in existence.

His thoughts were interrupted by a distressed call from further down the beach. The two boys looked round to see Tai Herbert running down the beach. Grimsby looked at Eric with a confused look on his face.

"Eric" called Kieran, rugby tackling him to the sand!

"Hey, what was that for" asked Eric, pushing him off?

"You were fucking miles away" said Kieran standing up. Eric stood up and brushed the sand off of his now soaking shirt and pants. Eric turned back to see that Tai was still shouting frantically.

"What the fuck's that idiot doing" asked Liam?

"I don't know I'm going to see if he's alright" replied Eric.

"You can't be serious" yelled Liam. But Eric was already out of ear shot, leaving his three friends stood staring after him.

"Tai" called Eric, when he was close enough to be heard. Flounder turned around; it was weird hearing someone call his by his proper name. He saw Eric jogging towards him and groaned. _Anyone but him_, he thought. But then he remembered Ariel, she was in trouble and anyone who was willing to help would do.

"Tai are you alright" asked Eric, drawing up alongside his classmate?

"Ariel," panted Flounder, "sh-she's in trouble!" Eric thought for a second. Ariel… the girl he had bumped into earlier.

"Where is she" he asked? Flounder pointed over to the caves and his eyes widened in horror. The tide was in and the rocks in front of the cave were submerged by wave after wave as they made their way into the caves.

Eric could see it too, and although he barely ever spoke to Ariel, he wanted to help. He thought quickly, the caves were cut off from the beach so that they were unaccusable on foot. Swimming to the caves was a possibility, but with the waves to big and the current so strong; he doubted that even the best swimmer would make it out there. Hiring a boat took too much time. Calling the coast guard took too much time. Eric looked up above the caves. Climb down the cliff? It was dangerous there was no doubt about that. But Ariel needed help and he couldn't see anyone else around who'd be willing to go and get her.

"Call an ambulance" he told Tai, tossing him his phone.

"Wha-" began Tai; but Eric was already gone.


	4. Chapter 4

Eric sprinted up to the top of the cliff and along to where the caves echoed with the force of the waves beneath him. He climbed carefully over the fence that boarded the edge of the cliff and looked down into the churning waters. If he fell he would die, it was as simple as that. He moved to the side of the cave, where he could see small ledges. Was he really about to do this? Risk his life to save a girl he seldom spoke to outside of lessons. Eric thought about her; the way she'd acted earlier when they'd (literally) run into each other on the beach. She had seemed… nervous, maybe even slightly intimidated by him. She was one of the few girls that hadn't tried getting close to Eric, or asked him out. For that he was grateful; he hated to say no and see the disappointment on their faces. But he hadn't been interested in a single one of them.

As Eric lowered himself cautiously on to the face of the cliff a small crowd gathered round behind the fence.

"Eric what are you doing" shrieked a voice?! Eric looked up to see his Aunt Carlotta staring at him with wide eyes.

"I have to help someone" he called back, raising his voice to be heard above the crashing waves and howling winds. He saw her mouth move again, but her words were drowned out by thunder. Eric could feel his heart pounding in his chest as he stepped down onto a ledge. Climbing up the cliff would have been so much easier. As it was, he had to look down constantly to see where he could put his feet. This meant that he wasn't a close to the cliff as he would have liked to have been and therefore the risk of falling was much higher. _Don't think about that_ he told himself; trying to focus on the situation.

Over the last few minutes Ariel had started to panic. Somehow she had managed to shuffle further back into the cave in to try and get away from the ferocious waves. She was soaked through and freezing. Another wave broke just short of her, the raging water covering her before retreating again. Ariel spluttered and choked on the salt water. She screamed again at the pain in her ankle. She was going to die. Nobody would find her, nobody could get to her.

Eric was about half way down the cliff by now, and Ariel's scream pierced through his ears.

"Ariel" he called out! But his voice was drowned out by the wind and the waves. He heard sirens above him; that told him that the ambulance was here and help would hopefully soon be on the way. The waves crashed up against the cliff face, throwing freezing water over Eric and threatening to tear him away from the safety of the cliff. Admittedly 'safety' was a poor choice of words, but he was safer here than he would be in the water.

Suddenly a massive wave crashed against the cliff face. And, although he tried desperately to hold on, Eric was thrown into the waves. Before he could take a breath, Eric hit the water. He was tossed up and down in the churning waters, trying with all his strength to swim to the surface. His arms, back and legs were knocked against the rocks. He could barely move, and, with no real rhythm he floundered to the surface. As his face broke the surface he filled his lungs quickly with much needed oxygen. Disorientated he looked around to see that he was inside the cave.

"Eric" screamed a voice! Eric barely had time to react when another wave came crashing down on top of him.

Ariel couldn't believe her eyes. As Eric's head broke the surface she had wondered at first whether she was seeing things. As another wave rose behind him she screamed his name in warning. But she had been too late and he once again disappeared. She frantically scanned the water for any sign that he was alright; for she knew the danger the rocks posed to anyone caught up in the rising tide. Suddenly she caught sight of something in the water. Quickly, Ariel outstretched her arm and grabbed the back of his shirt before he could slip out of her reach.

As soon as the waves had stopped tossing him around Eric lay still, face down in the freezing water. Amidst the confusion he had hit his head and could barely move, let alone swim. But he suddenly felt a hand grab him and was quickly pulled back to his senses when he realised that he had no breath left in his lungs. He lifted his head and gulped in the air around him. The water was shallow here so he was able to kneel down and get his breath back before opening his eyes. Ariel's scared face was the first thing he saw.


	5. Chapter 5

"Ariel," he breathed, "are you alright?"

"I think so," said Ariel, who was obviously close to tears, "Eric what are you doing?" All her nervousness she had felt when speaking to him before had vanished. Right now both of them were in danger and Eric was hurt, whether he'd admit to it or not.

"Helping you," said Eric, lifting himself shakily out of the water to sit beside Ariel, "Tai came up and said you were in trouble." Ariel nodded in response and took in Eric's physical state. He was shaken, there was no doubt about that, and she was sure he would be bruised all over. But he didn't appear to be badly hurt, or at least, she was fairly confident that nothing was broken.

When Eric caught her staring at him he could see the look of terror in her eyes.

"I'm fine," he reassured her. "Are you hurt?" Ariel was brought back to reality at the sound of Eric's voice.

"Just my ankle" she said, her voice shaking almost as much as she was. Eric was about to reply when another wave submerged the two of them. Ariel closed her eyes tightly, but then felt an arm around her, holding her protectively against the rocks. When the water ceased after a few seconds she was released and turned to see Eric getting to his feet.

"Come on," he said, holding out both his hands to Ariel, "we'll be safer if we go further back." Ariel nodded, but was reluctant to take Eric's hands. "Don't worry about your ankle; I'll have a look at it in a minute. Just let me help you and don't put any weight on it" said Eric kindly.

"Okay" said Ariel, taking Eric's hands and letting him pull her up. She swayed uneasily on one leg before Eric slipped him arm around her to steady her.

"Alright" he asked? Ariel merely nodded in response, glancing nervously behind her to check for any upcoming waves that could wipe them off their feet in seconds.

Eric helped her across the jagged rocks, being careful to make sure that her ankle never touched them. He knew she was hurt; and probably scared too. Although he didn't know her very well, he wanted to help her, and there was no denying that she was beautiful.

When the two of them reached the back of the cave, Eric lifted Ariel to sit on one of the larger rocks before lifting himself to sit beside her. His face twisted in pain as each movement sent shockwaves through his muscles.

"Are you okay" asked Ariel, a little shyly? Eric seemed surprised at her question at first but answered her anyway.

"I'm fine," he said, "just aching a bit, that's all. How's your ankle?" Ariel shrugged and looked down at her feet. She still had her shoes on, so it was difficult to see whether there was any damage.

"Do you want me to have a look" asked Eric?

"I'm not sure there's much you can do" answered Ariel.

"I can check if it's broken" said Eric, turning on the spot so that he was facing her. Ariel hesitated but then nodded and moved against the back of the cave so that her leg was resting on the rock in front of her. They were pretty high up now, and the waves couldn't reach them at the moment. But the tide was still coming in and soon they'd have to think of a plan.

Cautiously, Eric unlaced Ariel's shoe until it was practically hanging off her foot. Gently she slipping her foot out, whimpering in pain as she did so.

"It's okay," said Eric softly, "take your time." Ariel couldn't help but smile. She knew Eric was a nice guy, but for him to be this kind to her even though they hardly ever spoke just made her like him more.

"-oes?" Ariel was snapped out of her trance and realised Eric had spoken to her.

"I'm sorry, what" she asked?

"Can you move your toes" he asked again, smiling slightly?

"Oh… um" she said, looking down at her foot and attempting to wiggle her toes. Suddenly she gasped in pain and tears sprung into her eyes. Eric acknowledged this and took her hand in his. She looked at him shakily as tears slipped down her cheeks.

"Squeeze my hand if it hurts" he said. Ariel nodded as Eric gently squeezed her knee… she felt nothing. Eric studied her face for any sign of discomfort. He pressed gently on her shin and moved his hand down with the same gentle force. The pain grew slightly as his hand neared her ankle. Eric could see that she was beginning to feel the pain and he slowed down. He placed one finger gently on the side of her foot and she cried out in pain and gripped his hand.

"Okay, I'm sorry" said Eric quickly; bringing his hand back before taking a long look at her ankle.

"I don't think it's broken," he said, "but it is fractured."

"How do you know" asked Ariel curiously?

"Well the bruising suggests that-" began Eric, before he was interrupted by Ariel.

"No, I mean… you seem to know what you're doing" she said, mentally screaming at herself at how stupid she sounded. But Eric didn't seem to mind, and smiled kindly at her.

"I'm training to be a doctor," he explained, "after a year and a half I'd like to think I know the basics." Ariel stared at him for a while.

"I didn't know you wanted to be a doctor," she said, "you seemed like the kind of guy who preferred sports." Eric just shrugged.

"I guess that's what everyone thinks" he said, almost sadly. Then he remembered about Ariel's ankle. "Um…" he added, "just try not to move it too much and don't put any weight on it."

"Thank you" said Ariel sweetly.


	6. Chapter 6

Up above the cliff there was panic. Practically the whole village had come out in the storm to see what all the fuss was about.

"Carlotta" called Andrew, running to his wife with the twins at his heels!

"Oh Andrew" breathed Carlotta, throwing her arms around her husband.

"What happened" asked Andrew?

"It's Eric, Andrew he climbed down the cliff and he fell and…" she broke down into sobs. "Nobody saw him come back up." Andrew's eyes widened in horror as he tried to comfort his wife as the twins, too young to really understand; whimpered with fear for their older cousin. Eric's mother Kirsty had been Andrew's older sister; when she died he felt it only right that he and Carlotta took Eric in to their care. Paramedics and coast guards rushed around trying to think of ways to reach Ariel and find Eric and there was an agitated murmur among the people of the village. Scuttle and Sebastian had met up with Flounder who had explained everything quickly and breathlessly.

Several ambulances lined the top of the cliff, with more waiting next to the beach. There were police cars, and police asking people if they saw what happened. Of course only a few people really knew the truth. Some others thought it was a sporting activity gone wrong, and some even said that it was a suicide attempt. But it was a race against time to find both Ariel and Eric before it was too late. The trouble was, it was too dangerous to get a boat anywhere near the cliffs.


	7. Chapter 7

Over the next hour or so the tide only came in further. Eric helped Ariel as much as he could, but soon they were right at the back of the cave, on the highest ledge they were able to reach and the water still rose. Despite the situation, both Ariel and Eric were a lot calmer than they perhaps should have been. Maybe it was just the company of the other.

"Wait, so you have how many sisters" asked Eric?

"Six, they're all older than me, I don't expect you've met many of them" replied Ariel.

"I've met a few," said Eric, "Arista and Alana are in some of my classes, and I know Adella as well." Ariel bit her bottom lip. About a year ago now, Adella had asked Eric out; to which he'd replied as he always did. There was a moment of silence before Ariel spoke again.

"What about you," she asked, "what's your family like?" Eric hesitated, not sure whether he really wanted to talk about it. But he found himself telling her anyway. It felt odd, telling someone he barely knew about his family when he didn't even speak about to his closest friends.

"They're fine," he began, "but I guess sometimes I feel like I don't fit in."

"I know what you mean" said Ariel. Eric smiled, but had a feeling that she really didn't. "Have your parents lived in the bay all their lives as well" she continued?

Eric felt something twinge inside him. The subject of his parents was rarely brought up, and when it was, it was approached carefully. But he was going to blame her, she didn't know of course.

"No," he began, "I… they moved here just after I was born." Eric decided to just tell her, for he knew it would linger over them if he didn't say something. "But… I live with my Aunt and Uncle now because… well… my parents died in a car accident when I was young. I don't really remember them much but…" Eric could feel tears stinging his eyes and decided to stop, swallowing the lump in his throat.

"Eric I… I'm so sorry" said Ariel, hating herself for even mentioning it.

"It's fine," said Eric, "really. You didn't know." Ariel gave a half smile, but she felt terrible.

"That's no excuse, Eric I feel really bad about bringing it up" she said, almost in tears.

"Don't," reassured Eric, "honestly, don't worry about it."

Then he noticed that Ariel was shivering, and immediately felt bad.

"Here," he said, slipping out of his jacket and draping it round her shaking shoulders. "Try and keep warm." Ariel smiled a silent thank you, and wrapped the jacket tighter around her petit frame. The jacket was slightly damp, but it was true that it helped a little.

Eric looked up at Ariel and felt something he'd never felt before. Without even thinking about it his lifted his hand and put it under her chin, lifting her head just enough so that she was looked straight at him. His movements were slow but he knew what he was doing. He closed his eyes and lowered his lips to Ariel's. She seemed surprised at first, but soon relaxed a little. Not wanting to do too much too soon, Eric pulled back, the sweet taste of the kiss still lingering on his lips.

"What was that for" asked Ariel, her voice shaking slightly?

"What do you think" replied Eric? Ariel's eyes widened before she leant forward, her lips crashing against Eric's before he could refuse. To her surprise he didn't pull away. Instead, he brought his hand up to the back of her head, pulling her closer against him and deepening their kiss. After a while they both pulled back slowly. Eric smiled at Ariel.

This couldn't be happening, could it? Ariel had just kissed Eric Prince, twice! And neither of those times had he pulled back or tried to refuse. He had kissed her back! Every emotion flew through Ariel's head and she spoke before she could even think about what she was saying.

"Eric, I love you" she blurted, before putting her hand over her mouth in shock. His next words filled her with happiness she thought she might explode.

"I love you too" he said. He hadn't been sure before, but now he knew. He loved Ariel, and he wanted to be with her. That's why he'd come to help her. Before they knew it they were kissing again, almost forgetting that they were trapped in a life threatening situation.

Suddenly Ariel gasped, as the water rose to touch her feet. She looked down to see that the water had reached the ledge where they were sat, and didn't show any signs of stopping. She started to panic and her breaths quickened. Eric saw that she was scared and put an arm around her before moving to a kneeling position.

"Ariel listen to me" he said, trying to keep his voice as calm as possible. Ariel turned her head to face Eric, seeing the sincerity in his eyes.

"We're going to be alright," he said, "I promise I'll get us out of here." He had said it with such surety but he really didn't know if what he'd just said was true. Ariel swallowed hard and took a deep breath before nodding and taking Eric's hands in hers.

Eric looked down into the water. It was a lot calmer now, but still lapped against the rocks. Slowly he lowered himself into the freezing water. He couldn't help but gasp at how cold it was; cold enough to send his muscles into spasms if he hadn't had such tight control over them.

"Eric what are you doing" asked Ariel tearfully?

"I need to check how far away open water is," replied Eric, "I won't be long." Without another word he took a breath and disappeared under the water. Ariel tried to keep her eye on him, but it was too dark and he disappeared from sight almost as soon as he was the under the water, but after a minute Ariel began to panic. What if something had happened to him down there? He would drown. Ariel screamed out his name a couple of times before Eric appeared before her. He took a couple of deep breaths, but he didn't appear to be hurt.

"Eric" gasped Ariel, putting her arms round his shoulders and sobbing into the already soaked sleeve of his shirt.

"It's okay… Ariel what's wrong" asked Eric?

"I thought something had happened to you," sobbed Ariel, "you were down there for ages!" Eric put his arms around Ariel and lifted himself back onto the rock to sit next to her.

"I'm fine" he reassured her, planting a kiss on her cheek. Ariel smiled a cuddled closer to Eric.

"Eric you're freezing" she said, feeling bad now about taking his jacket.

"You will be in a minute" he said softly. Then he noticed the shock in her eyes and tried to ease her worry. "But it's fine, it's not… that you… you get used to it." But Ariel was still confused; what exactly was Eric's plan?

"Eric we can't get out of here, we're trapped" said Ariel.

"No we're not, I'll get us out but I need you to trust me Ariel" replied Eric, his voice soft but stern. Ariel thought for a moment. Of course she trusted him. The way he'd acted towards her over the last hour or so had meant he'd gained her trust completely.

"I do trust you" she said, "what's the plan?"

"We swim out," said Eric shortly. "But first I need to know how long you can hold your breath." Ariel nodded and slipped silently into the freezing water. She clung to the rock desperately, for it was difficult to stay afloat with one leg out of action.

"I don't know if I can swim very well" admitted Ariel.

"It's okay," replied Eric, "I won't let anything happen to you." Ariel nodded and took a deep breath before submerging herself under water. Eric went with her to make sure she could get back to the surface alright, and studied her face for any signs that she was beginning to find it a struggle.

After just less than a minute, a rush of bubbles escaped Ariel's lips and she outstretched her arm to grab Eric. Quickly he pulled her to the surface and brushed her hair back from her face. She coughed once and took several deep breaths.

"It's okay, just take deep breaths" said Eric, treading water whilst holding Ariel up.

Once Ariel had got her breath back she looked worriedly at Eric.

"I'm sorry" she said, hanging her head in shame. She had really wanted to prove to Eric that she'd be okay and that she too could hold her breath for as long as he could. But she couldn't. Those last ten seconds under the water had been hell and although she'd tried to stay for longer, her body told her that she needed to breathe.

"It's alright," said Eric kindly, "you'll be alright."

Just then a thought came to Eric's head. Having trained in medical school for over a year now he had to admit that the idea was stupid. But it could work.

"Ariel I want to try something," he said. "We'll both go under the water and then I want you to breathe out and put your lips against mine and breathe in again."

"Will that work" asked Ariel in surprise?

"I don't know," replied Eric truthfully, "but there's no harm in trying." Ariel agreed to this and once again the two of took a breath and sunk underwater. Ariel breathed out as Eric had told her and quickly put her lips to his. Eric opened his mouth slightly as Ariel breathed in. The feeling of someone sucking the air out of his lungs scared him slightly at first, but seeing that Ariel now had a little more breath made up his mind. He surfaced and gasped in the air around him whereas Ariel continued to breathe normally.

"Okay, we'll do that" decided Eric.

"No," gasped Ariel, "Eric that's not fair on you, you could drown if we do that." Eric cupped Ariel's face in his hands and kissed her softly.

"I'll be fine" he said, praying to God that what's he'd just said was true. Ariel sighed and the gasped in pain as her ankle brushed against the rocks.

"Hold on to me," continued Eric, "don't try and kick with that leg, I'll get us out, I promise." Ariel nodded and relaxed her breathing. The two of them remained silent, breathing as deeply as possible before they attempted the impossible. They both knew it was still blowing a tempest out there, and even if they did reach the surface, it would be incredibly difficult to stay there.


	8. Chapter 8

"Ready" asked Eric? Ariel nodded and the two of them took as deep a breath as their lungs would allow before diving under the water. Ariel grabbed Eric's shirt tightly in one hand and use her other arm and one leg to swim through the almost pitch black cave. She could see a faint light and knew that until they reached it she would have to hold her breath. Eric was a much stronger swimmer than Ariel, and used both his arms and legs to propel both he and Ariel towards the faint light of day. Years of swimming meant that he could hold his breath for a fairly long time; although, he had never passed his breath on to anyone else before and the more he thought about it, the more it was beginning to seem like an utterly stupid idea.

Suddenly Eric felt something brush against his torso, but thought nothing of it, thinking it was probably just a rock. But almost as soon as he banished the thought Ariel began tapping him. She couldn't do it. She had tried her hardest to hold on, and delay this as long as possible. But she couldn't hold on any longer. As a surge of bubbles escaped her lips she began to panic and tried desperately to get Eric's attention. He turned quickly to see the fear in Ariel's eyes as she instinctively tried to swim to the surface. But Eric kept her under, knowing that she would hit the top of the cave before she was able to get air. He pulled her to him and put his mouth to hers opening it slightly as he had done before. Desperate for air now, Ariel gasped as she took the air from Eric's lungs. She pulled back quickly when she opened her eyes and saw that Eric's were tightly shut. What had she done? _Oh god Eric hold on,_ she thought, grabbing her new boyfriend's hand. Eric opened his eyes suddenly when Ariel pulled back.

Without even checking if she was okay he turned around and continued towards the mouth of the cave. Yes, a stupid idea. Eric had no breath in his lungs and his chest felt tight and sore. He needed to breathe. Swimming as fast as he could, pulling Ariel along with him he realised that they were out of the cave now, but it was still a long swim to the surface and Eric's lungs were screaming for air. His body soon slipped into violent convulsions, his ability to hold his breath shortening by the second, as was apparent by the rush of bubbles from his nose and lips. He was slowing down, becoming weaker by the second as he began trying to breathe without conscious control, every muscle in his body had given up on him, leaving him shaking and choking just below the surface.

By now Ariel too was desperate for air again. Ignoring the pain in her ankle she kicked hard, her face breaking the surface the same millisecond she gasped for air. But she didn't have time to think about that, she pulled Eric out of the water as he began to choke on the water he'd taken in. He could hear Ariel screaming at him and the sirens from the top of the cliff. But he couldn't breathe, he couldn't move and soon he and Ariel were submerged again as the waves continued to crash on top of them and with one final struggle he pushed Ariel to the surface and blacked out.

Ariel knew she was going to die. She struggled desperately to stay above the surface, gasping in air whenever she could. All the while, she never once let go of Eric.


	9. Chapter 9

Just as Ariel felt like giving her she felt an arm around her waist and she was pulled up above the waves. Spluttering, she was lifted onto the deck of a small boat and a blanket shoved around her shoulders. Eric, where was Eric?

"Eric" she managed to gasp! The coastguards reached into the water again and managed to grab hold of Eric's arm, pulling him to the surface and dropping his limp body onto the deck of the boat. Still gasping for air Ariel knelt dropped to her knees in the small row boat and gripping Eric's shoulder.

"Eric" she sobbed!

As one of the coastguards rowed back, the other tried to talk to Ariel.

"Miss, are you hurt" he asked? Ariel shook her head, completely forgetting about her ankle.

"Help him," she sobbed, "please help him."

"There's nothing I can do until we get back to the beach" explained the coastguard. Ariel let out a coked sob and looked back to Eric. She brushed his jet black hair back from his eyes. His skin was so pale it was almost transparent and his lips were blue.

"I'm so sorry," sobbed Ariel, her voice barely above a whisper, "this is all my fault." Then she noticed something.

"Eric" she gasped, shaking him by the shoulders! But he remained unresponsive. "He's not breathing" she screamed!

But they had already reached the beach. Eric's lifeless body was lifted from the boat by coastguards and paramedics and laid out on the sand. Confused and hurt, Ariel stumbled from the boat trying to get to Eric.

"Ariel!" Ariel turned to see her parents and sisters running towards her. She let out a series of heart broken sobs before falling into her father's strong arms.

"Ariel, oh thank heavens you're safe" cried her mother Athena, wrapping her arms around her youngest daughter.

"Ariel what happened" asked Attina?

"Was it Vanessa again" gasped Arista?

"Girls," scolded Athena, "with you leave the poor dear alone, she must be completely traumatised." Ariel was grateful for her mother's control and remained sobbing uncontrollably in her father's strong arms.

"Ariel talk to me," said Triton, holding Ariel tightly by the shoulders, "are you hurt?"

"My ankle" sobbed Ariel! Triton held his daughter close as she shook with each sob and shivered against the cold.

"Eric!" Ariel turned to see a large crowd forming around Eric, who remained unconscious and unresponsive to everything round him and a woman who she presumed to be his Aunt screaming his name.

"Eric, Eric can you hear me" asked the paramedic, raising his voice to be heard above the crowd and slapping Eric lightly on the cheek to try and bring him back to consciousness? When Eric didn't answer he pitched Eric's nose and bent down, blowing air into the young man's lungs. Andrew and Carlotta managed to push their way through the crowd and knelt on the sand next to their nephew.

"Oh god" gasped Carlotta!

As the paramedic blew air into Eric's lung for the fifth time he gasped and began to choke. A couple of people helped him roll onto his side as salt water mixed with blood from his lungs spilled from Eric's mouth onto the sand. As Eric choked and coughed up the water he'd taken in, he shuddered as air rushed into his lungs and began gasping for breath.

"Get back, give him some air" shouting the coastguard!

"Eric" cried Carlotta, rushing forward and putting her hand comfortingly on Eric's shoulder. Eric could hear a thousand noises and his body shook with the effort to breathe correctly as he gulped in the much needed oxygen. Confused and disorientated he tried to concentrate. _How did he get back to the beach? Where was Ariel? _As all these questions pulsed through Eric's head a stretcher had been placed on the sand next to him and paramedics had helped him sit up. Looking around he could see practically the whole village crowded around him, their face's illuminated by the blue of the sirens. He continued to breathe deeply trying to ignore the burning in his throat and chest. But he couldn't ignore it. He was in agony and every breath stung his dry throat. He tried to swallow but the pain only intensified and he once again passed out.

"Eric" called the paramedic, as the teenager fell back and his body went limp! Luckily Eric was still breathing this time, but only just. His breaths were quick and raspy and his body quivered with the cold and lack of oxygen. Once they had gotten him onto the stretcher he was lifted with ease and carried quickly to the waiting ambulance.

Ariel tried to wriggle out of her father's arm to get to him but her ankle gave in and she cried out before falling heavily to the sand.

"Ariel what are you doing" asked Ariel's oldest sister Attina?

"I have to go with him" sobbed Ariel, trying desperately to get to her feet as a paramedic crouched beside her.

"Are you in any pain apart from your ankle" she asked? Ariel shook her head, letting out a heart broken sob as the ambulance carrying Eric left. "Okay, well we'll get you to the hospital and check you over just in case" said the paramedic.


	10. Chapter 10

Over the next few minutes Ariel was lifted onto a stretcher and taken into an ambulance. Her mother and father sat in the vehicle beside her as she sobbed with fear for Eric. She had just gotten him; how was it fair that he was taken away from her so soon?

"Ariel try and relax honey" soothed Athena, noticing how anxious Ariel looked.

"I can't," sobbed Ariel, "mum what if something's seriously wrong with him?"

"With who dear" asked Athena?

"Eric," said Ariel in a small voice, "the boy who saved me." Athena and Triton shared a worried glance, neither of them knowing what to say.

On the way to the hospital Eric drifted in and out of consciousness, but was never conscious long enough for him to realise where he was or where he was going. Carlotta and Grimsby rode in the ambulance with him; both equally worried about the young man who lay before them. An oxygen mask had been placed over his nose and mouth and he had been put on a drip because he was dehydrated. This seemed odd to Carlotta considering he was in this state having drowned and taken in too much water. But she had been told that salt water only dehydrated you faster. Grimsby was distraught. His lifelong friend, his brother, lay unconscious before him, completely helpless and on the brink of death.

Upon reaching the hospital Eric was rushed off and Grimsby and Carlotta were shown to the relative's room to wait. Ariel arrived shortly after Eric and was taken to a room in the ward next to his. It took about three hours for her to be examined and, luckily, everything seemed to be okay. Her ankle and leg was put in a cast for up to eight weeks until it healed.

"Is there anything I can get you" asked Helen, the nurse who had been tending to Ariel?

"Do you know anything about the boy who was brought in earlier" asked Ariel quickly?

"I'm afraid not," replied Helen, "but I can check for you if you like. What was his name?"

"Eric Prince" said Ariel. Helen nodded and then left the room.

Over the last three hours Eric had had various tests and caused a lot of panic among the nurses. He had stopped breathing twice and one of those times his heart had stopped as well. He had been diagnosed with hypothermia, asphyxia and hypoxia. The fact that he was freezing and could barely breathe was the only main concerns and nurses were working around the clock to make sure he survived. But the last few minutes he had gotten a lot worse and he had begun bleeding internally, putting more pressure on his lungs. As a result his body had given up fighting and the nurses hadn't had any other choice than to let him fall into a coma. Every part of his body was being controlled by various machines and all sorts of tests were still being run to try and find any solution to give him the capabilities to at least gain consciousness.

Helen returned to Ariel's room a minute late with a solemn look on her face.

"What," asked Ariel, pushing her mum's hand away, "Helen what is it."

"I will tell you, but first I need to know what your relation to Eric is" said Helen. Ariel froze. Her parents had specifically warned her about having a boyfriend and had insisted that she waited until after her exams to go looking for a relationship. And the fact that both her parents were say beside her made it even worse. But Helen wasn't going to give Ariel the answers she wanted without the truth.

"He's… he's my boyfriend" said Ariel. She could hear both her parent's gasps but kept focused on Helen. "Why," she decided to add? "Is he alright… has something happened?"

"I'm afraid your boyfriend's fallen into a coma" said Helen. Ariel felt her heart sink. No, not Eric, he couldn't be, he was stronger than that, much stronger, he could fight it, she knew he could!

"W-will he be okay" asked Ariel tearfully?

"It's too early to say at the moment," said Helen truthfully, "but I'll be sure to let you know as soon as something changes."

For the next two hours Ariel worried about Eric. This was all her fault. If she had been able to hold her breath like he could this would never have happened.

"Ariel what were you thinking," exclaimed Triton, "you've got exams coming up and this boy…"

"Shut up," exploded Ariel! "I love him and he saved my life!" Then without thinking she swung her legs over the edge of the bed and grabbed the crutches which rested against the wall.

"Ariel, don't," said Athena, "you need to rest."

"I need to see him" replied Ariel, and with that she left the room.


	11. Chapter 11

As she approached the ward where Eric was she noticed how the nurses rushed around, much more so than they had done in other parts of the hospital. She peered in every room until she came across the one Eric was staying in. Her heart skipped a beat. Eric was led on a bed in the middle of a large room. Various tubes and wires connected him to pieces of equipment to keep his heart beating and to push air into his lungs. She craned her neck to get a better look at Eric. Under the bright lights he looked even paler than before, his eyes were closed and every limb remained limply spread on the hospital bed.

"Excuse me?" Ariel turned around to see a woman walking towards her; the same woman who had been with Eric in the ambulance.

"Mrs Carlisle" asked Ariel?

"Yes, who are you" replied Carlotta. "You're not allowed to be here." Ariel couldn't help but notice that's this woman's cheeks were stained with tears and her eyes were red from crying.

"I'm sorry," said Ariel quickly, "I was just wondering if Eric was okay." Carlotta could only stare at the young lady before her. Whilst Eric had been in hospital a lot of girls had come and asked to see him, claiming that they had a crush on him. But this girl was different. For starters, she'd called her Mrs Carlisle, whereas every other girl had called her Mrs Prince, assuming that she was Eric's mother. But this girl knew she wasn't, suggesting that she was closer to Eric than the others had been.

"Who are you" she asked?

"I'm Ariel, Eric saved my life" said Ariel, a little tearfully.

"Oh, gosh it's you, Ariel, yes… Eric kept muttering your name on the way in" exclaimed Carlotta.

"He did" Ariel almost choked?! Carlotta nodded and then looked into the room where Eric lay.

"Is he alright" asked Ariel?

"I wouldn't say alright, no," said Carlotta truthfully. "But he's fighting, that's for sure."

"Is he still…" Ariel trailed off as tears stung her eyes.

"Yes," replied Carlotta, understanding completely, "yes, he's still in a coma. As far as I know anyway. About half an hour ago he started to choke and… well; I don't really know what happened." Ariel nodded, a single tear tracing a path down her face.

"I'm sure he'll be fine," reassured Carlotta, noticing how upset Ariel looked. "He's not one to give up easily." A choked sob escaped Ariel's throat. She knew that. Eric had risked his life to help her and hadn't given up until he didn't have a choice. Just thinking about how Eric must have been feeling on the way out of the cave made Ariel want to cry; and realising that it was her fault made it even worse. She loved Eric, and after today she knew that he loved her too. So much that he was willing to risk everything for her.

The two of them stood in silence before one of the doctors came out of the room and stood before them.

"How is he" asked Carlotta and Ariel simultaneously?

"He's stable," replied the doctor, "but he's still very weak and I can't promise anything at the moment." The two women nodded before Ariel spoke up.

"Can we see him" she asked?

"Of course, but be careful around the equipment." And with that the doctor turned and left down the corridor. Carlotta opened the door for Ariel, deciding that she had every right to see her boyfriend. Ariel went slowly to Eric's beside and looked down upon his lifeless body. She couldn't help the tears that fell from her eyes as she sat down in the chair behind her and rested her crutches against the wall.

"I'm so sorry" she whispered, lightly kissing Eric's forehead and taking his hand in hers.

Seeing the way Ariel touched Eric with such care made Carlotta smile. She never thought that Eric was interested in girls; so the fact that he'd risked his life to help Ariel made her special. Although, it did break her heart to see her nephew like this. He was usually so full of life, so strong, so willing to help. Yet he lay in front of her, completely helpless, struggling to stay alive. She sat the other side of him and took his hand, willing him to keep up the fight.

"Ariel" boomed a voice! The two women and the nurse who remained in the room all looked round to see Triton stood in the doorway.

"Daddy" gasped Ariel, gripping Eric's hand a little tighter!

"Young lady, you've been discharged, you're coming home with us right now" demanded Triton.

"No, daddy I'm staying with Eric" replied Ariel, desperate to stay beside the boy she loved.

"You'll do what I say" shouted Triton! Ariel's bottom lip trembled; her father was never usually so aggressive towards her.

"Mum please" begged Ariel, looking past her father.

"Ariel do as your father says" said Athena calmly. Ariel picked up her crutches and got to her feet, determined not to leave but ready to confront her parents.

"I love him," she said, "and you can't stop me from doing that. You owe him my life. I'd be dead if he hadn't come to help."

"And for that we're very grateful," said Athena, "but you need to come home." Ariel shook her head, bur her father wasn't having any of it. He stepped forward and seized her arm, dragging her from the room as she struggled to use the crutches whilst in his grip. She was crying by now, and angered that her parents didn't seem to understand her feelings.

"Sir if I might add…" began Carlotta, standing up too.

"No, you may not" said Triton shortly. And within a minute, Ariel had been dragged from the room. Shell-shocked, Carlotta sat back heavily. Just then Eric groaned softly and tilted his head just a fraction, as if he knew that Ariel was no longer with him.

"It's okay, I'm still here" said Carlotta, placing her hand over Eric's. She loved her nephew as her own son and intended to stay with him until this was over. Andrew, Grimsby, Charles and Madeline soon joined her in the room. 'How is he' motioned Grimsby?

"He's okay for now" said Carlotta, not wanting to get anyone's hopes up. Six year old Madeline sobbed quietly on her mother's lap, scared for her cousin; for she knew something bad had happened. Andrew held Charles at the foot of Eric's bed, answering his endless questions as best he could. _What's wrong with Eric? What happened? Who was that girl who was in her? When is he coming home? Why won't he wake up? _Andrew answered these questions truthfully, but carefully, knowing full well that Charles was worried about Eric just as much as anyone else. Charles was in awe of Eric and amazed at everything he did. Amazed at: how fast he could run, how tall he was, how he was training to be a doctor, how all the girls followed him round and a whole load of other things. He would often say that he wanted to be exactly like Eric.


	12. Chapter 12

Ariel didn't say a word all the way home, and, although her sisters tried to fuss over her when she got in the house, she went upstairs to her room without even acknowledging they'd spoken to her. As soon as she was in her room, she shut the door and threw herself onto her bed, sobbing in to her pillow as if her life depended on it. She hated her parents for taking her away from Eric. This wasn't fair. Why couldn't they just accept that she was in love? Of course, Adella had been jealous when she'd heard what had happened, but she had moved on, and was currently dating Eric's friend Kieran Jackson.

Over the next week Ariel's mother insisted she stayed at home, much to Ariel's delight. The last thing she felt like doing was going to school. Instead she just stayed in her room worrying about Eric. She barely touched any food her mother brought her and this worried Athena.

"Ariel you have to eat something" she insisted, as she placed a tuna sandwich next to her bed.

"I'm not hungry" said Ariel miserably. This was a lie, she was starving, but she wasn't going to accept anything from her parents until they let her see Eric. Her mother was staying at home with her while Triton was at work. He was a police officer, and her mother was a secretary, jobs that suited both of them.

"Ariel are you listening to me?" Ariel turned away from the window to face her mother, and emotionless expression spread across her face.

"You can't just keep worrying about this boy, it won't help" continued Athena.

"But I am worried," exclaimed Ariel! "Mum, he's my boyfriend, and I don't even know whether he's alive or not." The thought that Eric could be dead for all she knew made her shudder.

"Ariel me and your father had specifically told you that you're to wait until after yours exams to get a boyfriend, and you deliberately disobeyed us" scolded Athena.

"I don't care," said Ariel, "I love him."

"Ariel, I didn't want to have to say this but you leave me no choice," said Athena, pausing before she continued. "Ariel you are never to see that boy again."

"What" screamed Ariel?!

"You heard me." And with that, Athena left the room. Ariel sat heavily on the floor and pulled one knee up to her chest (only one because of her fractured ankle) and began to sob.


	13. Chapter 13

It took all of eight days until Eric was able to sustain life without the help of hospital machinery. And although he was still yet to gain consciousness, he was beginning to stir and his breathing had become more regular. Currently, his Aunt Carlotta and six year old cousin Madeline were sitting at his bedside.

"Mummy, when's Eric going to stop sleeping" asked Madeline?

"Soon my darling, soon" replied Carlotta, putting her hand to Eric's cheek. He was still hypoxic and still diagnosed with pneumonia, but he was expected to make a recovery. However, Carlotta had been warned that it would take a long time for Eric to recover completely, both physically and mentally.

Suddenly Eric let out a soft groan, and murmured something that Carlotta couldn't quite make out. She leant forward and placed Madeline gently on the floor.

"It's okay" she cooed, brushing Eric's hair back.

"Ar-iel" muttered Eric, almost as if he were softly calling out for her.

"No, Eric dear, it's me," said Carlotta, "it's Aunt Carlotta." To her surprise Eric's eyes flickered open, and he acknowledged her with bleary eyes.

"Carlotta" he managed to whisper? His voice was barely recognisable it was so quiet, and every sound he made was muffled by the oxygen mask which remained firmly over his nose and mouth. Despite this, Carlotta heard him clearly, her heart nearly jumping out of her chest with happiness.

"Eric, oh goodness are you okay" rushed Carlotta? Eric merely groaned in response, shutting his eyes slowly and opening them again as he tried to focus.

His chest felt tight, and the oxygen mask was incredibly restricting to the point where he thought he might choke. Shakily he reached up and pulled it over his head.

"Eric, don't, it's there for a reason" argued Carlotta, placing her hand over Eric's and applying a gentle force. Normally, such a gentle force wouldn't have affected Eric; it was only because he was so weak that it worked. But the oxygen mask made it difficult for Eric to catch his breath and breathing pure oxygen only made his throat and chest hurt. Ignoring his Aunt, he continued to remove the oxygen mask, and then let it fall to the ground and he drew a long, shaky breath in.

"Eric" cried Madeline, pulling herself up onto Eric's bed and lying herself on top of him! Eric gasped in pain as Carlotta quickly pulled Madeline off of Eric and on to her own lap.

"Madeline, you need to be careful, Eric's very poorly and very hurt" scolded Carlotta!

Eric smiled weakly before realising that he had no idea where he was, what had happened, what was wrong with him or how he had gotten here. Shakily he tried to sit himself up. But he couldn't, he wasn't strong enough to do anything by lie helplessly on the hospital bed.

Within moments, there was a doctor staring down at him.

"Hello Eric, I'm Peter Sheffield, I'm one of the doctors who's been looking after you," he said, "I'm just going to ask you a few questions, but just answer as best you can." Eric nodded, and blinked hard to try and clear his vision a little bit.

"Okay," continued the doctor, "first of all, can you hear my alright?" Eric nodded again, although he really didn't feel like answering anything at the moment.

"Alright, well that's one good thing I suppose, are you in any pain at all?"

"M… chest and m-my head" murmured Eric weakly.

"Is that all" asked Peter? Eric nodded and blinked slowly. He had so many questions, but couldn't find the strength to ask any of them.

"Okay, and does it just ache or is there another sort of… more intense pain" asked the doctor?

"Just aches," whispered Eric. "Wh-what happened?"

"You don't remember" asked Carlotta worriedly? Eric merely shook his head in response.

Carlotta and Peter exchanged a worried look before Peter turned his attention back to Eric.

"Eric do you know what year it is" he asked?

"Two th-thousand… fourteen" replied Eric.

"Good, and can you tell me how old you are?"

"Eighteen" said Eric weakly.

"Okay that's fine" said the doctor slowly.

"But surely if he can't remember then something's wrong," said Carlotta, "and you know he hit his head, so he could be suffering from memory loss couldn't he?"

"Ma'am, I think the only reason he can't remember what happened is because it all happened so quickly. Considering he's been in a coma for eight days I would expect that he had a great many questions that he wants answering. On top of this he's been given a large dosage of morphine to control the pain which will also be making him feel drowsy. There is a possibility of short term memory loss but I doubt it" concluded the doctor. Carlotta nodded and looked down at Eric, knowing that she had a lot of explaining to do.


	14. Chapter 14

Two weeks later Ariel went back to school, and the questions began. Everyone wanted to know everything but Ariel didn't feel like giving any answers. She walked the corridors with Flounder, Sebastian and Scuttle, who made sure she was able to get through on her crutches.

"Ariel why are you on crutches" asked Freya?

"Ariel, are you going out with Eric Prince" asked Diana?

"Of course she's not," interrupted Vanessa, standing directly in front of Ariel so that she couldn't get passed, "why on earth would Eric go out with her when he's already going out with me?"

"Shove off Vanessa" said Scuttle. Vanessa shot him a look then, and if looks could kill he'd surely be dead. But Vanessa wasn't finished here. She turned to the crowd and held up her slender arm to get their attention.

"You all think you know what happened but I know the truth. Eric risked his life to save Ariel, and in return what did she do. She drowned him. She panicked and held him under the water to try and save herself. She hasn't been to visit him once whilst he's been in hospital whereas I have been to see him every day. He was so upset that Ariel hadn't come to see him that his heart stopped; he would've died if I hadn't helped him. And once he woke up he thanked me with a kiss, and declared his undying love for me" she said, smirking at Ariel.

The whispers began then, and people in the crowd glanced Ariel's way.

"You nearly killed him" said Jemima in disbelief! Ariel could feel tears tinging her eyes. Vanessa was lying, wasn't she? Of course she was, Eric loved her he had told her that in the caves. But it was true that Ariel hadn't visited him for the three weeks he'd been in hospital; but only because her parents had forbid it. What if Vanessa was telling the truth? What if she and Eric were together now because of how much she'd been seeing him? No; Ariel wasn't going to let what Vanessa said get to her. She was going to see Eric. She had to find out what was going on. Moving as quickly as she could on crutches she pushed her way through the crowd and out into the school's car park before realising that she had no way of getting to the hospital.

"Ariel" called Sebastian, his thick Jamaican accent telling Ariel that it was him and no one else. She turned around to face him Flounder and Scuttle.

"I have to go and see him" she said tearfully, before letting out a heartbroken sob.

"But what about you parents," asked Flounder, "they'll never let you?"

"I don't care" sobbed Ariel. Her friends looked at each other for a moment before Sebastian spoke up again.

"If you want, I can give you a lift" he said.

"Thank you" choked Ariel.

"But what about your dad," asked Scuttle, "what if you're not back by the time he comes to pick you up?"

"Then you can distract him" said Ariel. Flounder and Scuttle exchanged a worried glance and then nodded.

"We'll do our best" said Flounder. Ariel smiled a silent thank you and got into Sebastian's car.

"Are you sure about this" he asked? Ariel took a deep breath and nodded. Sebastian had only just passed his driving test so he was cautious, but Ariel was just grateful to have such a caring friend.


	15. Chapter 15

"Okay, so I want to see you again in next week if that's alright" said the doctor?

"Yep, that's fine" said Carlotta, signing the last of the medical forms. After almost four weeks in hospital Eric was finally well enough to return home. Although he still looking pale and often got chest pains, the doctors had decided that there was nothing more that could be done for him and the chest pains would pass after a couple of minutes. Eric shook the doctor's hand and thanked him before turning towards his Aunt.

"Alright" she asked? Eric drew a long breath before answering.

"Yeah" he said, smiling slightly.

"Well I'm very glad to hear that," said Carlotta, "everyone was so worried about you." Eric smiled again, but it soon disappeared. He hadn't seen Ariel since the two of them were underwater together, and he had no idea if she was alright. It saddened him to think that she hadn't once been to visit him, and wondered if what she'd said in the caves was true. He followed his Aunt through the hospital, not really paying attention and crashed into the back of her when she stopped to wait for the elevator.

"Gosh, Eric you ought to watch where you're going" she said.

"I'm sorry, I was just…" but he trailed off and looked at his Aunt who was staring at him with a concerned expression sketched across her features.

"I'm sure she's got a good enough reason" she said kindly, knowing exactly what her nephew was thinking about. Eric smiled weakly and stepped into the elevator.

The moment Ariel stepped into the hospital she was greeted by the overwhelming smell of antiseptic. The waiting room was packed and there was a line of at least ten people at the front desk. Luckily she vaguely remembered where Eric's room was located, and so made her way to the elevators. When the doors opened she took a step back, allowing a dozen or so people to pass her before…

"Eric." The name left her mouth even before she could stop to think. Eric was stood with his Aunt just inside the elevator, staring at her with an emotionless expression. For a moment the two of them just stared at each other, neither really knowing what to say. Ariel wasn't sure what to think, she was debating whether to talk to him or just leap into his arms. He was okay, and that made Ariel happier than she could have ever imagined. But her happiness was overlooked with a million other emotions. She had done this. She was the reason he'd spent the last four weeks in hospital, and she wasn't even sure whether he still liked her, or whether he'd ever forgive her.

Eric on the other hand, was overcome with too many emotions to handle. He stepped slowly out of the lift as it began to once again fill with people and stood only inches away from Ariel. She was okay, after weeks of worrying he was finally able to see that she was alright. Every other emotion was pushed aside as he was filled with pure relief. Without wasting another second he wrapped his arms around Ariel and softly kissed her head. Then words started pouring out of Ariel's mouth before she could stop them.

"Eric I'm so sorry, I wanted to come honestly I did, but my parents wouldn't let me and I went back to school and Vanessa said that-" But her words were stopped abruptly when Eric pressed his lips against hers.

"Shut up" he whispered, breaking the kiss only for a second before pulling her back against him.

When they finally broke apart, Eric was the first to speak.

"Ariel, I've been so worried about you. I've spent the last two weeks trying to contact you but everybody I asked said they hadn't seen you for weeks, Ariel I didn't know what to think" he said breathlessly.

"You were worried about me" asked Ariel, a little tearfully?

"Of course I was Ariel, I love you" replied Eric. Ariel let out a choked sob and threw her crutches aside before wrapping her arms around Eric's neck.

"I love you too," she sobbed, "Eric I thought you were dead. This is all my fault, I should never have done that to you, I should have just held on."

"Ariel it's not your fault at all, I'm glad you did, I'm glad I was able to help you because you might not have made it otherwise and it would have been more difficult for me to get you out if you were unconscious so I might not have made it either. Ariel I don't remember much about what happened but I know from what people have told me that you saved me; that you didn't let go of me and I can only say thank you for that" rushed Eric, holding Ariel close and running his fingers through her fiery red hair.

"Eric I'll go and wait in the car" said Carlotta. Eric smiled a silent thank you over Ariel's shoulder and watched as his Aunt left the scene.

(**A/N - I'm off on holiday tomorrow :D But that means I probably won't be able to update for a while.. I'll update when I can! I hope you've enjoyed it so far and feel free to review because good or bad they're always helpful).**


	16. Chapter 16

Flounder and Scuttle exchanged fearful glances as they walked out the school gates and saw Ariel's father sat in his car opposite them. Flounder gulped and his hands trembled with nerves as he played with the buttons on his coat.

"What do we tell him" asked Scuttle, breaking the silence and making Flounder jump.

"You don't say a word." Both Flounder and Scuttle turned to see Sebastian walking up to them. "God knows de trouble you'll get us in. Follow my lead." Flounder nodded and reluctantly the three of them crossed the road to Ariel's car. Luckily for them, the window was open and Triton saw them before they'd had time to speak.

"Good afternoon boys" he said, his deep voice making Flounder shake more.

"Good afternoon sir," began Sebastian, "Ariel asked us to come and talk to you." At the sound of his youngest daughter's name Triton straightened up.

"What is it," he asked, "what's happened?"

"Noting sir, she wanted us to tell you dat she's going to stay a while after school to catch up on the work she missed whilst she was away" lied Sebastian, his voice becoming slightly higher with the effort to keep his story straight. Triton's puzzled look bore down on the three boys, making them feel incredibly small.

"I wasn't aware of this," he said, "she was meant to be coming straight home." Scuttle opened his mouth to speak, but Sebastian quickly interrupted him.

"Dat's why she wanted us to tell you sir; she didn't want you to worry." There was silence as Triton thought about what was being said.

"And did she say when she'd like picking up" he asked after what seemed like forever. Sebastian froze; he hadn't thought about that. He hadn't any idea what Ariel was planning on doing now. Whether she would walk home from the hospital or wanted him to pick her up. Either way, she wouldn't be coming back to school.

"In an hour" said Scuttle. Triton looked at Scuttle, who hadn't spoken until now.

"Very well," he said, "thank you."

Sebastian, Flounder and Scuttle walked in silence until they were round the corner and the Sebastian turned on Scuttle.

"I tought I told you to be quiet" he fumed!

"You were being quiet for too long," argued Scuttle, "I was only trying to help."

"What are we going to do," asked Flounder? "He'll be back in an hour to pick her up and she won't be there."

"I go and get her," said Sebastian, "I only hope I can get to de hospital and back in time."


End file.
